First let me introduce myself. I am an older rider who has owned a baker's dozen motorcycles beginning with clapped-out old British bikes back in the sixties, to many fine Japanese bikes, a BMW and finally my ultimate ride, my 2008 GL1800 GoldWing. I joined this forum back in September, but I have been lurking up until now because I had nothing of much interest to report. Until the other day, that is, when I dropped my Wing.
I couldn't believe I could possibly be so careless. I was straddling the bike while it was on the center stand. I eased it forward off the center stand and began adjusting something on the instrument panel. When I was finished, I just let the bike fall gently to the left because I assumed the side stand was down. Well guess what folks - the side stand was up and I went down with the bike. I was thrown clear, but the sound of the crash as the bike hit the poured concrete garage floor was deafening.
I was then confronted with two problems. One was getting the bike upright and the other was assessing the damage caused by the crash. I had recently seen a Youtube clip of a mature guy picking up a dropped Wing so I applied this technique with my bike. Once I found the right placement of my feet to make sure I was leveraging the bike with my legs and not my back, I was able to raise it sufficiently to support the bike with the kickstand. It was actually easier than I thought it was going to be. Once I got the bike upright, I carefully checked over my Baby for damage and was amazed to find nothing. There was not a scratch anywhere on the bike that I could see including all that expensive Tupperware. Those engine guards on the Wing do not look very substantial, but they certainly are engineered to protect the bike from damage. I was so relieved! I just thought I would pass this on as a reminder to never be complacent or distracted when taking a Wing off its center stand. Always have have the side stand down as a safety precaution. That's all I got for now. I hope my experience will prevent some people from dropping their wings, but even if you do, it is not the end of the world..

Tooslow, welcome to the forum glad you decided to join in, as you have probably noticed sometimes the rest of us don't have much to report either,we just bable:D And dont feel bad about dropping your bike, I done it too. Not once but twice I've backed my Wing in the shed and like you was fooling with something and then got off the bike without the stand down. So don't feel like the LoneRanger;)Hang around lots of good folks here.

TS, welcome to the forum from Pa and welcome to the community of Wing droppers.. Your not alone.. We know that sinking feeling. Now that you have the bike upright, ride safe..

Welcome 'TS" I am sure you already know there are only two types of riders "THOSE WHO HAVE DROPED THEIR BIKES ------AND THOSE
WHO ARE GOING TO DROP THEM !

Welcome again from Southern Calif

Welcome to the site TooSlow from another Pa. guy & I only have one other thing to say.

Been there Done that & didn't even get a lousy T-shirt.

hello and welcome to GWOF tooslow. the last time i dropped my wing the highway board landed on my foot, you would be surprised how light a wing is when it lands on your foot -)

Welcome ToSlow to the forum and although I am not glad you dropped your bike, I am glad that I am not the only one that does this. I have an 08 also and have gently let it drop twice with my wife on the back. Maybe it is an 08 problem and not us. Like you, I was totally surprised by the fact that it never even put a scratch on the bike. Congrats on getting it up by yourself. Unfortunately for me I was riding with a group both times and they got to help me up with the bike and then rub it in for the rest of the ride.

Welcome to the forum too slow, and glad you are ok, and your bike is ok. Now that you got the first drop out of the way, time to really put on the miles and enjoy it!

[QUOTE=So-Cal;14591]Welcome 'TS" I am sure you already know there are only two types of riders "THOSE WHO HAVE DROPED THEIR BIKES ------AND THOSE
WHO ARE GOING TO DROP THEM !

Yep how true. I average about once a year. I lay it down on the guards. The last time Jeanne was on the back. She wasn't hurt but knows now to just sit there and hang on. She isnt going to stop it any more than me. (This is at low to 0 speed layover which happens when you have the forks turned and let it go too far.)

Dang it it is 70 deg out so I better git on her.

I've done it too.

Only get off I ever had was dodging a pedestrian on the wing, and all it did was rash up the forward fairing a wee bit. Fireblade got knocked over in the garage and did $70 worth of damage, and it is still carrying battle scars.

Thanks to all those who have responded to my first post and thank you for all the support, folks. I am relieved to discover that I am not the only one who has dropped a Wing due to a moment of inattention. I agree with the thought that there are only two kinds of Wing riders - those who have dropped their bikes and those who have not dropped them (yet).
My handle on this site (TooSlow) may require an explanation. In no way is it in reference to the performance characteristics of my GL1800 GoldWing. Too Slow is a mild protest against the painfully slow speed limits of this over-policed Canadian province of Ontario. 80 kilometers per hour (50 MPH) is the maximum for any highway in this area and 100 kilometers per hour (60 MPH) for multi-lane divided highways. The penalties if caught speeding here are absolutely draconian. It is just too damn slow. Once again, thanks for all the comments and ride safe.

No problem TooSlow we all share a common goal/interest.

My handle on this site (TooSlow) may require an explanation. In no way is it in reference to the performance characteristics of my GL1800 GoldWing. Too Slow is a mild protest against the painfully slow speed limits of this over-policed Canadian province of Ontario. 80 kilometers per hour (50 MPH) is the maximum for any highway in this area and 100 kilometers per hour (60 MPH) for multi-lane divided highways. The penalties if caught speeding here are absolutely draconian. It is just too damn slow. Once again, thanks for all the comments and ride safe.

Now you can ressurect another thread. The link below is to a thread telling each other how we acquired our screen names. Again lots of new guys on the site. They can share if they want.

http://www.goldwingowners.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2093

consider yourself lucky!! i test rode a 2010 gl1800 the other day and it feels so light, like all the weight is in the wheels.

i drive a 1978 gl1000... this thing is heavy! all the weights up top, if i drop it,, gosh i dont even want to think about it!!!

I dropped my first GW several years ago. I had never heard of the technic your refering to until the other day on this site. Boy did I struggle to get it back up with the help of another. I was only 19 back then and in real good shape. I hope I never have one fall over again but if I do it wont be as hard to get back up now that I know about the technic I've seen on here.

I never owned a bike I haven't dropped at least once.

Been there, done that. still riding though. Glad you're onboard now.

Welcome 'TS" I am sure you already know there are only two types of riders "THOSE WHO HAVE DROPED THEIR BIKES ------AND THOSE
WHO ARE GOING TO DROP THEM !

It's bound to happen, That "senior" moment and down it goes. So far knock on wood it's not been my turn yet. I've heard more then once that the crashbars a well designed for such an occurance and glad to hear the tells are true. Anyway glad everythings OK and WELCOME to the site.

Dont feel bad Been there Done That. Glad your wing is ok they are like a Timex Watch they take a beating and keep on ticking

Their is a first for everything and that is ok as long as you learn something from it.Wish you the best with the Golwing.I have done much dumber things.

Yeah, you've got your share of problems up there in Canada. TooSlow is the least of your worries. When it comes to free speech up there, you are muzzled. We are all being too much governed here in the states as well. The problem as I see it is too much government. Your going too fast, you can't say that, you need this light bulb, you should use this flush toilet to limit water usage, and on and on it goes. There is no end in sight for these socialists.

Ok I'm finished:)

My latest drop. Rode into the service bay at a dealership. Tried to stop! Waxed concrete floor! Yes you guessed it! What an entrance I made.

Yeah, you've got your share of problems up there in Canada. TooSlow is the least of your worries. When it comes to free speech up there, you are muzzled. We are all being too much governed here in the states as well. The problem as I see it is too much government. Your going too fast, you can't say that, you need this light bulb, you should use this flush toilet to limit water usage, and on and on it goes. There is no end in sight for these socialists.

Ok I'm finished:)

A good purge is healthy now and then. Somtimes you have to let it out. Sorry you have to flush twice.

Ha ha haaaaaaa, glad to hear I am not alone. Old bike rider here at 73, dropped my 08....
(dang I hate to admit this) nine times! Usually when I dropped it other riders helped me right it, but once I dropped it in front of a truck stop....embarassing to say the least....it got the adrenalin going so I got it up by myself using the proper procedure of backing my butt up to it and sliding my feet (you can't pick them up, you have to slide them back, or at least I did) but I got it up and decided it was time to let go of another 13 grand and have it triked out with EZ Steering. Now I love my trike and am comfortable!

I'm guilty of dropping my bike, it was a 1988 Harley Electra Glide Classic. When I got the Wing I put a Voyager on it so that I wouldn't wind up being the 'entertainment'. For me I discovered I was short on one end (5'4" tall).

TS, let me add my voice to the chorus. I have a 2008 BMW R1200RT which is the first bike I've ever owned. That's important because when I got my 2008 Wing 2 months ago it was quite a difference in weight and feel at slow speed. Yup, first day. First day! Was doing a slow turn and the fall seemed to happen in slow (awful) motion. But after getting it right, there was only a scratch on the bottom of the front guard! Well made, indeed!

Well .. Me and the wife and a couple went for a wing ride tonight ... Stopped at a bar for "steak and taters "... The parking lot was slanted so at kickstand down ,,, The bike was almost vertical .. I got off and my wife wiggled a little bit ,, And sure enough there goes the wing on it's side ....I'm new to riding the Wing and is sure is a hell of a lot heavier than my Honda Hawk was... The friends we were riding with kinda luaghed it off and we had the bike back up in no time .. They have a 97 Wing LOADED ... and It's happened to them a few times also .. Told my wife "No more yakking on the phone when we gotta get on or off " Either way we put on 150 miles tonight and the weather was peerrrfeeccttt :) Love how the bike just kinda sat at a 30 degree angle .. I didn't have to worry about it landing on my wife's legs .

Well, it has happened to me now. Turned into a church parking lot to turn around, had to stop due to traffic......put the ole left foot down......fine fine gravel. Left foot just kept slidding left. Down we went. I was durn lucky:rolleyes: I didn't pull something:eek: doing the splits on a Wing:o

Well, it has happened to me now. Turned into a church parking lot to turn around, had to stop due to traffic......put the ole left foot down......fine fine gravel. Left foot just kept slidding left. Down we went. I was durn lucky:rolleyes: I didn't pull something:eek: doing the splits on a Wing:o

Who's next ?

What is a Voyager trike lady ?

What is a Voyager trike lady ?


It's the trike kit.

:)

Thanks I got ya now.

Who's next ?

Only the Phantom knows for sure.......:eek:

Only the Phantom knows for sure.......:eek:

Get off the puter and start packing! Obama is looking forward to your visit.